


The Best Laid Plans of Gods and Mortals...

by Anonymous



Category: Hunger Games Trilogy - Suzanne Collins
Genre: Alternate Universe - Gods & Goddesses, Angst and Feels, Betrayal, Dark Peeta Mellark, F/M, ask to tag
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-11
Updated: 2021-01-11
Packaged: 2021-03-15 11:07:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 10,026
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28687632
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: Ever since Katniss became a god, Snow has wanted to get rid of her. One day, Peeta Mellark enters Snow's temple, and suddenly, Snow might get his wish.
Relationships: Johanna Mason/Peeta Mellark
Comments: 1
Kudos: 1
Collections: Five Figure Fanwork Exchange 2020





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [KannaOphelia](https://archiveofourown.org/users/KannaOphelia/gifts).



Snow watched with disinterest as Effie ran over and hugged the newest goddess in their ranks. He had never been all that interested in the girl as a hero, too worried about his own personal favor to worry about anyone else's. Katniss looked around, asking quietly, "What is this place?"

"Welcome to the realm of the deities!" Effie exclaimed. "You're officially a goddess!"

Katniss stared at her in shock. "What...you're serious? But no one...no one's been elevated to that status in decades!"

"For good reason," Haymitch grumbled. "But you made the cut, whether you meant to or not. So now that you're here, you may as well make the most of it."

Katniss shook her head. "What...what do I do? I mean, what is my purpose here?"

"Whatever you want it to be, dear!" Effie exclaimed excitedly. "Come now, let's get you to Cinna! He's the one who helps set you up with a 'look' that you can use for the first couple centuries if you don't know what you want it to be. It's very important to have a look, dear. You may not know it yet, but it will be a big thing when the time comes that you gather worshippers!"

Snow inwardly scoffed. Worshippers? She stopped some demons from taking the planet, sure, but that didn't mean that she was anything more than a glorified hero at the moment. Who would want to worship a young adult with a bow and a quiver of arrows who just happened to have a stubborn streak that was a little too long? It was positively absurd.

No, he told himself. There was no chance she was going to become a big thing, not outside the city she grew up in. And there she'd be more of a folk hero than anything else.

He insisted that to himself, even as Cinna brought her out, decked out in jewels and flame. He insisted it to himself as she returned to Earth and was met with accolades and praise wherever she went. She couldn't be the next big thing. She'd fade in a couple years. He doubted she'd make it even more than three years before deciding that being a goddess wasn't all it was supposed to be, and returned to her mortal status, just to be around those people that she, for some reason Snow couldn't fathom, cared about. Mortals. He scoffed. They were all too sentimental for his tastes. If anyone knew what he knew in the deities' realm, it was that you didn't get attached to mortals. No one ever wanted to bribe Haymitch to get into the world of the dead. It was an unsavory business, and quicker to just die yourself.

Katniss walked over to him eventually, and stuck her hand out. "It's an honor to see you, sir," she said.

Snow looked at her with distaste, but politely shook her hand. "Make no mistake, Miss Everdeen," he said. "I was not a part of the people who wanted you here. I will allow it, of course, but you must tread carefully. The people on Earth are rather...temperamental."

Katniss took her hand back and said, "Well, I must disagree," she said. "I rather like humans. Speaking as a human---"

"---Former human," Snow corrected.

"...Former human," Katniss said, working her jaw, "I rather enjoy their company."

"And humans like the company of dogs. That doesn't mean that they want to be one," Snow said simply.

Katniss got a spark of anger in her eyes. "You're rather flippant about the people who worship you," she said.

Snow shrugged. "Maybe I'd be kinder if more of them actually remembered that I'm the reason they exist," he said simply.

Katniss shook her head. "I'm afraid that conditional love isn't much of love at all," she said.

Snow nodded. "Very true," he said, looking her over. "I don't suppose you'd know anything about that?"

Katniss smiled a fake polite smile, and said, "I'm afraid not, sir," before walking off.

With an attitude like that, Snow thought three years might even be too generous. She was entirely too callous for anyone to care about her if they knew who she really was.

* * *

Snow had thought that the people had grown past worshipping the underdogs. Clearly, he had been wrong. No one knew who Katniss Everdeen was, and she was the latest underdog that the people had seen.

A couple of his fellow gods had elevated that Everdeen girl to hero status, and then to a low-level goddess five years ago. And the citizens of this world were flocking to worship her, get a few drops of luck for themselves. It was disgusting, desperate ass-kissing. It made him nauseated, and she was thriving on it. She would walk among the mortals, toy with them as she pleased, and return to his plane of existence with a few new stories to tell and some more notches in her belt. A child, he thought with a sneer. She had only been eighteen when his brethren had blessed her. He was several thousand years old, he had all the other gods under _his_ control, and _this_ was the thanks he got? It was simply despicable. Five years. Five miserable, long years. And a whole eternity to go with that stupid girl fighting him every inch of the way.

He grumbled in his temple in the biggest city on their Earth, letting the priest do his rituals, making his usual offerings. He resisted the urge to throw the offerings to the floor. It may be the only sustenance and praise he got for quite some time. The last few worshippers he _had_ been getting had moved to other gods or goddesses, and quite a few, he knew, were now praying to the Everdeen girl. He had half a mind to smite them where they stood.

After the priest had done his duty and slunk away to his quarters, Snow was ready to leave, when he found a young man opening the doors and shuffling in. He mumbled something unintelligible when the priest came out to welcome him. He made his way to the alter, and offered two small gold coins. "It's not much, I know," he said. "But it's all I got. I need some answers, about...about Katniss. And I figured you'd be the best one to go to. You're the one in charge, after all."

Snow considered. He dimly recognized the man. The Everdeen girl had been with him when the other gods had blessed her. Maybe he could be of some use to him. "What is it you need, my child?" Snow asked.

The man jumped, before looking at the alter. "M-my girlfriend," he stammered out. "Katniss. I need to know. Does she remember me at all? She...she promised she would come back to me, to walk in the meadow one more time. But she hasn't come back. I've gone there every weekend I can for the past five years. I'm starting to worry she's forgotten about me."

Snow used the smoke coming from the remains of the altar to wrap himself around the man to speak to him, showing him everything Snow had seen from Katniss. Her recklessness, countless male lovers, and the way she bragged about how much better she was now that she was a goddess. The man said nothing, and Snow showed him more. The first time she had greeted him, acting like she knew everything. The countless times she had pretended to be an authority on humans since then. Every time she had done something to forget about him, or brushed talk of humans to the side if it didn't have to deal with her. And he went so far as to pull up that time when she remembered the people she left behind and laughed over them.

When Snow pulled away, the man was crying. "Has she forgotten all about me?" he asked. "She had promised me we would marry. I don't understand. What would cause her to do this?"

"It is such a foolhardy mistake," Snow mused. "After all, she can be sent back to Earth and be mortal again, if she isn't careful."

The man stared at the altar. "You mean that?" he asked. "You can make her human again?"

"Naturally," Snow said. "Not without a public outcry, right now. But if she abuses her power, she can lose followers and wind up being as useless as a mortal. At that point, it's easy to make the switch."

The man wiped at his tears and stared resolutely at the altar. "I can make that happen," he said. "I've been holding up the ruse that she's been visiting me. That she's still acknowledging where she came from. What would happen if I were to stop that?"

Snow slowly started to smile. Finally, someone who hated her as much as he did. If he played his cards right, he could have this man doing his every whim, do all the dirty work, and he could get rid of Katniss once and for all. "You couldn't do it all at once or no one would believe you," he said simply. "But if you want to bring her back down to your level, I would be more than happy to help you."

"How would you do that?" he asked.

This man was smart. He didn't want to jump in head-first without knowing what he was getting into. Snow could respect that. "You would become my champion on Earth. Becoming my champion doesn't mean that she would have to stop visiting you; if anything, she should be visiting you more. You would become my mouthpiece, speaking on behalf of the highest of gods. If she shows up to speak to you, I know she will be furious, but I can keep you safe. Though, really, my poor child, I doubt she would care enough to return."

Pouring that final salt into the man's wounds was enough to get him nodding like a bobblehead at the altar. "I will do whatever it takes," he vowed. "I want her back here. I want her to remember where she came from. She needs to know that I'm not someone who can simply be used as a prop and then thrown away."

"Very good, my child." Snow appeared as an apparition in front of the man and the man took an involuntary step back, before standing his ground. Brave. Foolhardy. Determined. He was perfect. "May I have your name?"

"Peeta," the man said softly. "My name is Peeta."

"Well, then, Peeta," Snow said, smiling grimly. "Welcome to the world of the gods. I assure you, it's not nearly as glamorous as many claim, but we don't have to tell anyone that, now, do we?"

"No, sir, I suppose not," Peeta said.

Snow leaned forward. "Here's what we're going to do. I am going to give you my first name, the name that my mother gave me. Alert the priest to this, and he will name you the new champion. I don't know how much favor you will gain right away, considering that I am an old god, and not many people are nearly as impressed with me as they once were, but that won't matter. The people who matter in this game will notice. And, of course, Katniss may notice as well."

Peeta nodded. "All right," he agreed. "I'm ready."

Snow offered his hand out and Peeta took it, seizing up when he made contact. "My name..." Snow said directly into Peeta's mind, "...Is Coryo."


	2. Chapter 2

Snow was pleased, at least, that the high priest cared about the young Peeta finding out Snow's name. The word spread among the priests' circles within a few hours, and by the time Peeta had gone home to rest at the end of the day, everyone in the city who had a shred of a position in the temples had found out. Peeta seemed more than a little bewildered the next morning, when people came up to him in the street, congratulating him on becoming Snow's champion. And Snow was positively vindictive when someone overheard the congratulations, and immediately flocked to him, asking how it felt to be a god's champion. "Oh, it's...unexpected, but not unwelcome," he said, decidedly uncertain about the position he found himself in. "The great god Snow rules over all the other gods, after all, and it is nice to see that he found me in his favor."

The woman beamed at him and said, "Perhaps you would like to tell more about your tale over a lunch?"

Peeta looked absolutely flabbergasted. "Oh, of course!" he said. "My family is a bunch of bakers, I can grab some bread and we can find a butcher and make ourselves some sandwiches?"

"Would you mind eating in the park?" she asked.

"Not at all," Peeta said. "What's your name?"

"Johanna," she said. "My friends call me Jo."

"Nice to meet you, Johanna. Let's go eat," Peeta said.

Snow turned his attention away from Peeta and back to the temple. To his mild surprise, more people than the priest were there at the moment. There were a few people leaving offerings, a couple near the doors were praying. It was nice to feel appreciated again. If he had known all it took was a little hope to become a champion of gods while they were alive, he would have picked up another champion long ago. A young girl stood in the doorway, eyes pink and watery, but she didn't shed a single tear as she slowly exited the temple.

If he wasn't mistaken, and Snow was rarely mistaken, the girl was Everdeen's younger sister, Primrose. Of course, he didn't quite know what she would be doing in the city, least of all in his temple. He thought she was responsible for erecting a small alter for Katniss, and was trying to get the funds for it. Of course, everyone had pooled their money together quickly, and she had gotten to make several altars in several different cities. Never enough for a temple, but the altars certainly inflated Katniss' ego nonetheless. She would brag about it incessantly whenever she got the chance.

What Primrose was doing with Snow, he didn't understand. She didn't have anything she needed from him, and it was no secret that Katniss had spoken out about Snow in the past before being elevated to goddess status. It didn't make any sense to him. But, perhaps she was upset that Peeta had gone to Snow, instead of to Katniss. If Katniss had her sister believing that she loved Peeta, then Primrose might accuse her of something. Of course, Snow doubted he would be that lucky. But she could still be upset enough to talk to Katniss about it, ask a couple questions. It was worth looking into.

He followed her innocuously through the city, and found her in one of the small gardens outside the local apothecary house. "Katniss, I need to talk to you," she said. "Something isn't right."

Snow made to move behind a nearby tree. Just because Primrose couldn't see him in his incorporeal form didn't mean Katniss wouldn't.

Sure enough, a golden light formed above the alter and Katniss stood there, looking Primrose over. "What's wrong, Prim?" she asked. "The boys giving you trouble again?"

Primrose shook her head. "No. It's not that..." she said. "Something's happened with Peeta."

"Peeta?" Katniss repeated dumbly. Not with worry, not with anger, not even with excitement. She just repeated his name like he meant nothing to her. Perhaps that was the case. "What happened?"

"He learned one of the other gods' names," Primrose said softly.

Katniss squared her shoulders and got a furious look in her eyes as she asked in a steely voice, "Which one?"

"I...I think it was Snow," Primrose said.

Katniss growled and a chilly wind blew through the air, a signal of Katniss' anger. She never could quite control nature's reactions to an angry deity. She had never care to truly learn.

Snow tried to hide the obvious enjoyment he was getting from this, hoping that Katniss wouldn't pick up on it until after Primrose was gone. "I'll take care of it, Prim. He doesn't know what he's gotten himself into, but I can get him out of it," Katniss said.

Primrose chewed her lip. "He seems...happier like this, though, Katniss. I know it hurts, and it's been taking some of the attention away from you back towards...towards Snow, and I know you two had your differences. But isn't it dangerous to go up against him?" she asked.

"Snow is a toxic tyrant, and one that I wouldn't trust with anyone I care about," Katniss snapped. "I've seen the way he treats the other gods and goddesses, and he doesn't deserve to be praised for keeping humans alive. That's common sense, not some grand achievement."

Snow felt indignation rise in him. Clearly, Katniss had no idea what she was talking about. She didn't know that he was the one to convince the other gods not to strike humans down, time and time again. She didn't realize that he was the one who made the humans in the first place. And he treated other deities with respect and dignity. Just because he got the final say in most endeavors didn't mean he didn't consider the others' opinions. Katniss saw only what she wanted to see. She was very dangerous indeed.

Primrose shrugged her shoulders. "I know that, and you know that, but...Peeta doesn't. Wouldn't it be better to not confront him, and just get Snow to remove his blessing?"

Katniss looked past Prim, to the tree that Snow was now leaning against and not even trying to hide behind. He knew he had been found out, the best thing to do now would be to simply act like it was all intentional in the first place. "Trust me, Prim. He won't revoke that blessing."

Snow pulled up a semi-corpeoral form as Primrose turned around. She jumped in surprise when she saw Snow there. "I'll leave you two to talk," she hastily said, before scurrying away before Katniss could so much as voice a protest.

Katniss ran her hands through her hair in frustration. "I don't understand," she said. "What do you get from making Peeta your champion? Come to mock me, maybe? Lord the fact that you have him over my head?"

"Not at all," Snow purred. "He came to me, asking about you. The least I could do is give the poor boy some answers. I saw a kindred spirit in him. After all, he and I seemed to get along a lot better without you in the way. A tyrant? Really? You know nothing about the matters of gods, and you still try to act like you know better than I do, after all this has come to pass?"

Katniss snarled at him. "Peeta isn't your plaything, Snow!" she roared. Her face was flushed red, and her breathing ragged. She didn't seem to have a shred of worry for Peeta in her body language. All she was, was indignance. Indignance in the fact that Snow got to him before she did.

Well. May as well play along with her delusions for a little while. After all, since he was the one who created humans, she wasn't completely wrong. At the end of the day, Peeta was _his,_ not hers. "Of course he is. What else could he be?" Snow asked.

"He's _mine,_ not yours!" Katniss exclaimed.

"He _was_ yours," Snow said, holding his hands out. "And now he's mine. If you gracefully accept defeat, I may even just keep you around, to see what would happen." Not really, but he may as well give her the chance to bow out before he destroyed her.

Katniss flung a bolt of energy at Snow, but Snow deflected it easily. She hadn't ever practiced manipulating energy, and no one was willing to teach her with her know-it-all attitude. "I think you're a better archer than you are a goddess," Snow said simply. "I'll see you around, Miss Everdeen. After I have a talk with Peeta, of course."

Storming past Snow, Katniss ran through the streets to get to Peeta, and Snow smiled. Katniss' demise had begun.


	3. Chapter 3

When Snow returned to his vessel that Peeta had around his neck, he and the woman named Johanna were sitting in a park, watching children run around and play, and they were chatting with each other in a pleasant, meaningless conversation. "So, Peeta," she said. "I don't suppose you'd be willing to offer me some of your good luck in finding a god or goddess to follow?"

"I mean, if I knew how I did it I'd tell you," he laughed. "But truth be told, it all kind of happened in a whirlwind. One thing bled into the next, and...Snow liked me enough to take me on. I don't know what else to tell you."

Johanna laughed. "You're fortunate," she said. "I was hoping that maybe you could pass along some tips to me, but I think that the fact of the matter is that you just happened to be at the right place at the right time. But you are a pleasant person to be around. I wouldn't mind getting to hang out with you a little more."

"Sounds like fun," Peeta said with a genuine smile. He seemed to finally be moving on from Katniss, which was a good sign. He would hate to have Peeta back out of their contract.

Snow could feel Katniss approaching, and he didn't doubt the more sensitive mortals could feel it as well. Katniss came into sight, seething mad, and she called, "Peeta!" in a sharp voice.

Peeta turned and groaned when he saw Katniss. "Oh. Hi, Katniss. Can this wait? I'm kind of enjoying my time with Johanna..."

Katniss stomped over and crossed her arms. "No. This can't wait. I need to speak with you. Now."

Johanna pulled a face. "Do you always let her boss you around like that? You can definitely do better."

"I didn't let her do it before and I'm not letting her do it now," Peeta said smoothly. "I'm busy, Katniss. Come back later."

"Funny," she said, venom in her voice as she spat, "You had all the time in the world when you were talking with Snow earlier. What changed?"

"I've changed, believe it or not," Peeta said. "Snow saw my worth and he decided to take me on. Nothing more, nothing less."

Katniss seethed. "He's going to kill you," she spat. "He's going to send you to fight one of his battles, and you're going to end up dead. And for what?!"

"For honor?" Peeta asked. "For glory? For someone to actually appreciate me?" Oh, that was good. Sew the seeds of doubt into everyone around them. Peeta was a natural at this.

Johanna looked between Katniss and Peeta. "Something here I'm not privy to?" she asked.

Peeta sighed and turned to Johanna. "Katniss may not have visited me as often as I claimed she did," he said. "I lied about it to others to make them believe that maybe they would get some attention from her as well, if they helped me out."

Katniss turned red. "How dare you!" she exclaimed. "I visited you exactly as much as I could! Between everything going on, do you really think I'd be able to spend all my time with you?"

"It would be nice," Peeta said with a shrug. "Make me feel wanted again. It wouldn't even have to be all the time. Just...once or twice, the two of us alone together would have been really nice to have memories of."

Katniss huffed and stormed off.

"So how often did she visit you, really?" Johanna asked. "If you were lying about it?"

Peeta cringed. "Honestly, this is the first time I've seen her in months. She may have liked to visit me earlier in her goddess days, but she's grown more distant as time goes on. I think that becoming a deity changed her."

Johanna clucked her tongue in sympathy. "That sucks," she said. "If you ever want to talk about it more, I'll be here for you, okay? I should probably head off now, my parents are expecting me to come into work later today, but it was really nice getting to talk to you."

"You, too," Peeta said, waving and smiling at her as she left.

Snow spoke to Peeta in a low tone only Peeta could hear. "She was trying to use you, you know. Just like Katniss did."

"Not quite like Katniss," Peeta said. "And at least she was honest that she wanted help. She didn't pretend to love me, and she genuinely enjoyed my company for the time that we shared. It was nice."

"How terribly domestic," Snow scoffed. "You really are a family man, then?"

"It would be nice to have a family one day," Peeta agreed. "I was hoping for one with Katniss, but...well. You can see how that turned out."

Snow shook his head. He really didn't understand Peeta very well. "I would never want to tie myself down to one woman if I didn't have to," he said. "In the early days, I had to, for appearances sake, but honestly. It's not worth the work."

"Not worth the work to you, maybe," Peeta said, watching Johanna walk across the street. "To me, it's welcoming."

Snow sighed. "Well, if you want that, I'm more than happy to help you," he said. "I can help bless you and your family as my champion. Katniss won't like it."

Peeta smirked. "Who cares what Katniss thinks?" he asked. "The whole point of this was to get back at her. That hasn't changed."

"Just making sure you still want to go through with it," Snow said mildly.

"Definitely," Peeta said.

Snow nodded. "Well, then, I have a few favors to call in," he said simply. "In order to get this to work, we're going to have to be strategic about it. Was there anyone that Katniss liked in her human life? Besides you?"

"She didn't like me. She liked the attention I gave her," Peeta scoffed quietly. "There was one guy. His name was...Gale, I think. Why, going to recruit him too?"

"No, I have a better plan for him," Snow said. "Catch her in the act of being...too human for a goddess."

"Too human for a goddess?" Peeta asked.

"Well, she still has some weaknesses I can exploit," Snow said. "Catch her in the act and all of a sudden her favor starts to sour. This isn't _just_ a game of jealousy. It's her reputation we have to destroy. One lover's quarrel won't achieve what we're going for."

"All right," Peeta said. "Anything I need to do?"

"Find a photographer," Snow said. "I have an idea."


	4. Chapter 4

Snow could practically _feel_ Peeta's stomach churning as he walked among the streets. He knew something big was to come. He had caught on to Snow's plan quickly, but Snow could tell Peeta was uncertain how far he was willing to go. Snow hoped that Peeta wouldn't stop him, call off this whole thing and let Katniss remain a goddess. She was a nagging sore in Snow's side, and Peeta was just the sort of champion he needed to knock her down a few dozen pegs. Not to mention, if Peeta went back on their contract, Snow might have to smite him for appearance's sake. That wouldn't look good on either of them. Snow to the gods and Peeta to the humans. No, it was best that they worked together.

They got a photographer and Peeta told him to stay stationed at Katniss' altar, taking pictures of everyone who came and went. The photographer asked if Peeta was looking for something specific, and Peeta simply told him, "You'll know it when you see it, trust me."

Then they laid a trap for Gale. Snow put it in the young man's mind to visit the altar, see if Katniss would come see him. The man took the thought quickly, and Snow shook his head. All too often, mortals wanted the attention of other mortals, or of deities. It truly was a pathetic sight.

Snow kept an eye on the altar that night, waiting as most of the shadows of the night owls went to bed, or at least to their home. The photographer stayed positioned at the altar, and Snow kept him awake with barely a whisper every so often as he started to doze.

And sure enough, a scrawny, but determined man snuck through the streets not long after. He looked like a hunter, all lean muscle with not much to show for it unless he wanted to show it off. He lit a candle at the altar and mumbled, "Katniss, if you're out there, I just want to talk to you..."

The photographer took a few pictures, but nothing was happening. Snow lifted up his presence a little bit, and soon enough, Katniss showed up. Snow was the human equivalent of across the street from the altar, but since he was such a high-level god, he could still hear their conversation. "Gale, what are you doing here?"

"I don't know, honestly...I just couldn't get you off of my mind recently. I know that you haven't been around Peeta. Word about your fight with him has been getting around fast. And I was wondering...if maybe you'd like to go hunting with me?"

There was silence for a while after that, except for the occasional click of the camera shutter that was so quiet Snow could barely hear it, and he knew Katniss wouldn't be attuned to expecting it. Whatever was going on, it was good, and it was certainly going to get Katniss in trouble. "...Is that a yes?" Gale asked.

"It's a yes, with promise for more if you listen to me," Katniss teased.

The two moved away from the altar and Snow waited as they walked down the street. Eventually, the photographer muttered, "That was definitely a kiss for the ages. That Mellark kid wasn't kidding."

Snow offered himself a small grin of victory, before heading away from the altar to Peeta, who was lying awake in his bed. "The plan is coming along nicely," Snow informed him.

"Great," Peeta said, but he didn't sound excited. "She does still love him, then?"

"I don't think she loves him," Snow said, chewing on his words. He couldn't have Peeta be _too_ demoralized from this realization. He still needed the man for his plans. "I think she loves the attention, much like she loved it from you. If she were truly in love with him, I doubt she would have accepted the offer to become a goddess. She wouldn't want to see his demise."

"Or mine, if she loved me," Peeta said dejectedly.

"Peeta, you must not let this get to you," Snow said, not unkindly, but with no room to argue. "You wanted to show the world who she was. A lying, stealing woman who prefers the attention she gets to her loved ones' happiness. Right?"

"Right," Peeta said. "It's just...it hurts. Have you ever felt rejection from someone you loved?"

Snow put on the appropriate somber tone as he thought back through it. Only one person had hurt him like that, and he didn't feel like going into details. Not with anyone, but especially not with a mortal. "Once," he said. "And she made sure to never cross my path again after that."

Peeta sighed. "You can go through with making sure she regrets it, but I...despite it all, despite what she did...I still care about her. It kills me, but I'm worried."

"If she becomes a human again you can keep a much closer eye on her," Snow reasoned.

"Sure, I guess," Peeta said. "There's just so much uncertainty in all of this."

"Such is the way of life, even for gods and goddesses," Snow said with a shrug. "I thought I was nothing until you came along. Many people had stopped worshipping me in favor of younger, seemingly kinder deities. But it is nice to know that sometimes, people just need a spark of hope to return to you. Sometimes, they need more than that. Sometimes, they need a push in the right direction."

Peeta's face darkened. "I don't want her back," he said decisively. "Not if she isn't going to love me. I want to make sure she knows what she did is wrong. Can't we achieve that?"

"We can," Snow said. "But we need to follow through with this plan."

Peeta sighed, before going to his desk and picking up a scrap of paper. "I'm going to call Johanna," he said. "See if she wants to go out again sometime. It's time that I move on from moping about Katniss. And if people ask, I'll tell them the truth: Katniss and I fought, and she's not interested in me so long as I'm paying loyalty to someone else as well. She hates sharing. Most people like to forget that about her. And if I get a girlfriend out of this, so much the better."

Snow grinned. "Excellent plan, my child. I'll talk to my fellow deities once the news goes around about Katniss. Surely, they'll start to rethink their blessing when faced with this."


	5. Chapter 5

It was annoying, but the news didn't get put out right away. The photographer kept the photos to himself until he got the go-ahead from Peeta to publish them. Once they got published, however, they were everywhere. On the newspapers, in the gossipers' hands. And the gossipers took the tall tales and made them ever taller and taller. Scorning Katniss, and pitying Peeta. Katniss apparently cheating on her human lover was the talk of the town, and no one was the wiser as to what was going on. Katniss herself was furious, but she didn't dare face Snow. Not only because they both knew he would drop-kick her from her deity status, but also, because apparently, no one else had seen her in the realm for several days, even _before_ the pictures were leaked.

"I don't understand it," Effie said, wringing her hands. "We gave her everything she wanted. And she was so in love with Peeta, too—I mean, everyone thought she had a heart of gold! I don't know what went wrong!"

"You gave her some power and she showed her true colors," Haymitch scoffed. "Nothing more, nothing less. She puts on a show for the people, but you know how she acted when she got here. You saw what she did to Snow of all people, Effie. Surely, this can't be _that_ unexpected."

"We all had our wild phases, Haymitch. You're one to talk," Effie scoffed. "You tried to lose yourself in power and alcohol intentionally. You barely scraped through staying a god with everything you tried."

Haymitch just gave her a dead-eyed stare. "Look, when little Miss Everdeen comes back, we need to have a talk with her about being responsible. If enough people get angry with her, we'll have no choice but to drop her back to being a mortal."

"Why would we warn her?" Snow asked. "Surely, we already told her the dangers of staying in public favor?"

"I mean, yeah, I told her," Haymitch growled. "She shrugged me off, the little know-it-all."

"Then what makes you think she'll listen now?" Snow asked. "She's the people's champion. When she no longer endears herself to the people, they'll call for her removal. We both know you don't want her staying around the way she is."

Haymitch sighed and took a long drink. "Not sayin' I want her to die, Coryo. That's an entirely different game, and one I'm not willing to play."

"Do we have a choice in that?" Snow asked.

"We _always_ have that choice," Effie sighed. "We could take her out of public view for a couple centuries until she's learned her lesson, let her go back to Earth when she's agreed that she'll tone it down."

"We both know that'll never happen," Haymitch laughed. "For all her whining and bitching about being an adult and treating her like one, she never did grow out of her teenage rebellion."

"Indeed," Snow said with a nod. He was glad that at least Haymitch was on his side. He was never great about keeping a hold on Effie, but Haymitch wasn't one to betray him. Not for centuries. "So. What do we do?"

"When she comes here, let me talk to her," Effie begged. "She might listen to me if I'm gentle about it."

"She won't," Haymitch warned. "She won't listen to anyone but herself, and even that's hit-or-miss."

"Should we just demote her now?" Snow drawled. "After all, the people are rather enraged."

"There's not quite enough outrage for that, I think," Haymitch sighed.

Snow gave Haymitch a look. "There's plenty of outrage. You just don't want her to die."

"So? I've seen too many lower gods and goddesses be turned back to mortals. I know what it does to a person," Haymitch snapped. "The whole reason I tried not to get attached to her; she was a hothead. I could see this coming a mile away. And there's always the fanatics to worry about."

Effie worried her hands more. "I just...I just think she's owed a chance," she said.

"Why not go ahead and let some of the other gods tell you what they think of that," Haymitch said. "All of them hate her."

Effie sighed.

Snow looked between them. He didn't speak a word, not if he thought it would get him in trouble. "She's on very thin ice," Snow said. "One more infraction, and we'll have no choice but to demote her. Agreed?"

Haymitch nodded. "Not that I like it any," he grumbled.

Snow turned to Effie. "Agreed?" he asked.

Effie clucked her tongue. "I would have thought you of all people would be more forgiving," she scolded. "What with your past with Lucy, and all."

Snow's eyes hardened. "Lucy signed her own doom," he said. "That had nothing to do with me."

"We both know that's a lie," Effie said. "You didn't like how popular she was getting. You thought she would spill your secrets. You're the reason she's no longer a goddess. And everyone knows it."

Thunder rumbled ominously in the distance as Snow tried to get his anger under control. "We don't mention her for good reason, Effie," Haymitch warned. "She's still a sensitive subject."

Effie huffed. "I'm not wrong," she defended.

"Never said you were or weren't," Haymitch said, casting a furtive glance at Snow.

Snow stroked his beard. "I think I've heard enough," he said. "One more infraction and she's gone. You should learn how to not get attached, Effie."

Effie shook her head. "Someone has to great the newcomers," she defended. "And if they're not welcomed with open arms, they'll just go right back to where they were."

"Which is a problem, how?" Haymitch asked.

"People stop worshipping us if they don't have hope that we're listening and caring for them," Effie said simply. "The people need that hope. They need to believe that their life can mean something. If we take Katniss away, people will see how dangerously close they can be to losing that meaning. And if they lose that meaning, who's to say that we won't lose all the humans to chaos?"

"Yes, but that's if they're reckless and don't care," Haymitch said. "Once it's common knowledge that Katniss squandered her opportunity, they'll be more angered if we keep her over kicking her."

"Tell your followers as much," Snow told them. "When they believe that there's something wrong with Katniss, they won't object to her being removed. Most people won't, but there are always the die-hard believers. We need to keep an eye on them."

Haymitch nodded, and Effie reluctantly agreed. Snow adjourned their meeting, and wandered their realm for a desperately-needed escape. He didn't want to be burdened by running everything right now. He just wanted to ensure that Katniss wasn't a thorn in his side for the rest of eternity, and forgetting that she existed for a while, while just wandering the realm was nice enough. He needed to do this more often. Once Katniss was gone, he resolved to let himself have this time to himself.

As he walked, he noticed a new forest outcropping in the distance, and he inwardly snarled. Katniss was making her mark on here, whether he liked it or not. He'd ensure her hunting spaces were torn down if no one used them for a century. After all, the less he remembered her, the better. The only reason he didn't tear them down right now was because the other gods and goddesses got amusement out of them. Once they grew bored, he would whisk them away and no one would object.

He couldn't wait until Katniss was but a distant memory.


	6. Chapter 6

The next time Katniss showed up in the deities' realm, she was flushed, sweaty, and looked like she had been through a war. Snow watched her with disinterest as Effie rushed over and fretted over her. "It's about time you showed up," he said simply. "We need to have a talk."

Katniss stared at Snow with ice-cold fury in her eyes. "Yes, we do. Why did you do that?" she asked him, ignoring Effie trying to make sure she was all right.

"Do what?" Snow asked, genuinely curious. He hadn't started anything sinister this week. He had figured that she would find her way into trouble on her own, and he was right.

"There was a mob when I was called down to Earth," she growled. "They attacked me with holy water and cursed weapons. I barely made it out of there alive!"

"I had nothing to do with that, if you'd believe me," Snow said. "I haven't even checked on your precious human lover for the past couple days, if you must know. I've been spending time in this realm, trying to keep myself calm. After all, an angered god is one far more likely to lose favor than a calm one."

Katniss snarled at him and thunder rumbled again in the distance as the temperature dropped significantly. "You forget, Miss Everdeen," Snow said, in a dangerously quiet voice, "I have seen many gods and goddesses like yourself fall in my time. You're barely more than a child, and in this realm you ought to treat your elders with the knowledge that they know more about these processes than you do. It's a dangerous game that you're playing, and I'm not below stooping to your level to play it. Mind your tongue, mind your manners, and step back in line."

He didn't get a response, not that he expected one. "I'm heading to Earth," he said. "May as well make sure no other attacks are being planned. We don't want any of the other deities to be injured, now, do we?"

When he materialized next to Peeta, the man barely jumped. "I was expecting you to show up today," he said.

"The attack on Katniss; did you hear about it?" Snow asked.

Peeta nodded. "I didn't think they were serious, until reports came in that almost all of them were mortally wounded by her and the few that weren't dead as they got to the hospital weren't looking likely to make it."

Snow hummed. "She's more ruthless than I thought," he said. "I didn't plan this attack; I wouldn't want so much collateral damage to come from this. However, this does mean we need to watch your back to make sure she doesn't try anything."

Peeta nodded. "Makes sense," he said with a sigh. "Although I wish that we didn't have to take such measures."

"I wish that too," Snow said. He wished that he didn't have to waste energy on this at all, but some gods were just terrible at pre-planning. They could see in retrospect what Katniss was becoming, but they never would have predicted this in the moment.

Snow waved a hand over Peeta, and some sigils formed in the air before being sucked into Peeta's person. "Some protection wards," Snow explained at Peeta's questioning look. "Specifically against gods. If there were something that tried to attack you, and it was divine in origin, it would lose all its power immediately."

Peeta looked down in interest. "Does that include Katniss?" he asked.

"Yes," Snow said. "But the ones I used for you are specifically for fatal injuries. So don't do something stupid and _almost_ die, because that won't work and we'll be back at square one."

Peeta nodded. "I've just been going about my day-to-day life recently," he said. "I've met with Johanna a couple times and she seems sweet on me. It's really nice to have someone who actually cares. A couple people have asked about Katniss and I told them the truth. They asked if I knew about Gale before the pictures went out and I said I suspected. She's not being worshipped much at all, right now. Her altar has been vandalized a couple times."

"I heard about the vandalism from one of the other goddesses. I imagine that Katniss was less than pleased." Snow resisted the urge to smile, simply nodding along to the update. Everything seemed to be clicking into place. He was starting to pick up strands in the plan that hadn't been there before. He nodded. "This should go swimmingly, then," he said simply. "One more misstep on her part and she's out; the other gods and goddesses agree. We just need to find something so horrible for her to do that no one would even think to defend her. We don't want the die-hards doing something drastic in order to 'get even' with us."

"What would that be?" Peeta asked warily.

Snow sighed. "I don't know," he said. "Truthfully, I thought that the public would turn away from her enough with the cheating."

"Most humans prescribe to the philosophy of 'no one is perfect' nowadays," Peeta said grimly. "Lots more room for error."

Snow hummed. "Well, that _is_ a problem. I suppose we can set up some sort of challenge for her, to save her honor..."

Peeta stared at the ground, before looking up at Snow. "I'll fight against her," he said. "I'm your champion, after all. We set up a public challenge in the square for her. Tell her that if she's so positive that she deserves to be a goddess, she should be able to leave behind everything this world had to offer her. After all, if most of the people she cares for are just going to die in a couple decades or sooner anyway, she shouldn't be so torn up about it."

"What happens if at the time I take the protection spells away, she fatally wounds you?" Snow asked.

"I wouldn't worry about that," Peeta said. "Because I'm not the only one she would have to leave behind."

Snow realized who he was talking about. "Primrose Everdeen? You know she'd never kill her sister."

"The public outrage over it would get us nowhere anyway," Peeta said. "But Katniss' challenge would be to publicly wipe her hands clean of Prim. After all, her worshippers need to know she can't be strong-armed into doing something against them so long as her sister is alive."

"A duel against you and denouncing her sister..." Snow mused. "That just might work. Set it up. I'll get the deities needed to oversee it assembled."

Peeta nodded. "And, in case I don't make it...I'm pleased to have worked with you. It may not have been under the best circumstances, but there's no one I would have rather done this with. I hope you understand that and that it holds meaning for you."

Snow nodded grimly. "I am pleased to have worked with you as well. Rest assured, my child, you will go down in history as one of my greatest champions," Snow assured. _And one of the most malleable. It was all too easy to persuade you to my side._


	7. Chapter 7

The street was filled with people. Peeta had sent out the public challenge against Katniss a couple days ago, and today was the last day Katniss had to respond before she admitted defeat. Peeta had been waiting in the square the entire time, and Katniss hadn't showed up yet. She had to, though. She knew that she wouldn't let him denounce her publicly.

Primrose sat next to him, fuming. "I still don't like this," she informed him. "Katniss is my sister!"

"And we want to make sure that she won't do something just because you tell her to," Peeta said. "We don't want to add a giant target to your back. Who _knows_ how many people might try and kill you for their own gain?"

Primrose snarled, "You sound more like Snow every day. And that's not a compliment."

"Wasn't expecting it to be," Peeta replied simply.

Katniss walked through the crowd, up to Peeta, and snarled, "What the hell are you playing at, Peeta?"

"My declaration was very clear, Katniss," Peeta said simply. "I want to make sure that you won't be exploited by me or Prim. You need to prove that."

"As if I would ever listen to you after you pledged allegiance to Snow," Katniss snarled.

A shocked murmur went through the crowd. Peeta smiled grimly. "Well, that hurt more than expected," he said. "But what about Prim?"

"What about her?" Katniss asked.

"You know. Would you do something just because she asked?" Peeta asked. "How easy would you be to leverage if someone held Prim hostage?"

"I don't like what you're implying," Katniss snarled.

"Oh, so you _would_ denounce her, then?" Peeta asked.

"No, I don't like the fact that you're implying someone would _hurt my sister,"_ Katniss snarled.

Peeta said nothing, let those words hang in the air for a while. Snow, covering Peeta in an invisible shroud, was impressed. He didn't even need to plant an idea into Peeta's head yet. He had done all this on his own. It was fascinating to watch.

Katniss crossed her arms and huffed. "The whole reason I became a goddess was through protecting Prim, you know this. I'd do anything for her."

"Anything," Peeta repeated hollowly. "Yet, as soon as you became a goddess, you _dropped_ me. You went off to whatever city wasn't here to flirt with boys and have some fun. Guess we know what love of yours is unconditional, then."

With a snap of his fingers, two of Snow's priests came out of the crowd and grabbed Prim. "You're a liability, Katniss," Peeta said. "I'll take care of Prim and make sure no one can get to her in Snow's temple, for as long as she lives. Maybe in a century or so you'll be less inclined to do whatever your sister begs of you. Until then, we can't let this world get destroyed just because someone takes her."

"Oh, like hell you will!" Katniss exclaimed, drawing a knife and holding it to Peeta's neck.

The crowd gasped. Peeta didn't even flinch. "I've known you don't love me for a long time now," he said. "But I have a couple reasons to live just yet, so forgive me if I don't let you slit my throat." He twisted her arm until she dropped the knife and picked it up himself, holding it at arm's length but not striking Katniss with it. "All you have to do, is denounce your sister, and this will all go away."

"Go to hell," Katniss spat.

Peeta didn't move, didn't flinch, didn't recoil. During a public challenge, deities couldn't smite people just because they felt like it, and Peeta knew this. Snow watched eagerly as Peeta waited. "Will you denounce your sister?" he asked.

Primrose was scared. She looked at Katniss with pleading in her eyes. "Just do it, Katniss, please!" she begged. "I don't want to be locked in a temple the rest of my life!"

"I'm not letting you go, Prim!" Katniss exclaimed.

Primrose looked like she might cry. "I don't want you to, but you have to! Don't you want me to be able to live my life?"

Katniss looked shocked. "I'm going to protect you until my final breath, Prim!"

"Then let's make this your final breath," Peeta said, grim determination in his eyes. He turned to the crowd. "As you have seen, Katniss cannot be trusted to hold the good of the people in her mind! She would do anything to protect her sister! And that includes hurting everyone in this square!"

Snow knew that most of them weren't believing Peeta, so he decided to push Peeta to up the ante. He placed the thought in Peeta's mind, and Peeta accepted it without a second thought. "You don't believe me? Well, let's see. Katniss claimed she loves me, isn't that right, Katniss?"

Katniss was glaring at him.

"Oh, I forgot. You don't like me since I sided with Snow. Let's find someone else you care about, then," Peeta said.

Another priest brought Gale into the square, and the people were murmuring again. Everyone and their uncle knew that Katniss had dropped Peeta _for_ Gale. And they were obviously eager to see who she would choose. "Then make your choice," Peeta said. "Who would you have me kill?"

Katniss paled. "You wouldn't," she whispered. "You don't have it in you."

Peeta laughed. "You don't think so because I was smitten with you when we were kids," he said. "But you've never seen what I'm truly capable of when pushed to my limits. And I'm going to protect this world and the people in it, Katniss. I swore that duty when I agreed to work with Snow." He didn't, but that was a lovely touch to get Snow in the people's graces again. "So, I'm following through with that duty. Which one should I kill? Gale, or Prim? All this will go away if you choose Prim."

Katniss looked between the two options, trying to decide. Prim was sobbing, and Gale just stood there, looking at her with desperation, and just the tiniest shred of hope. "He won't kill either of us," Gale said with complete certainty. "You're right. He doesn't have it in him."

"You're willing to bet your life on that?" Peeta challenged.

Gale just stared him down. "Yes, I am," he spat. "You're one sick son of a bitch, but you're not a killer."

Peeta laughed, and Gale's resolve wavered. "You keep telling yourself that," Peeta said simply. "I'm sure it'll be a great comfort when you die."

Katniss was still standing there, and the people were starting to mutter again. "She shouldn't be trusted," said one. "Not if she's this torn up about it."

"Do we even need to kill either of them? Both of them are leaving her all torn up," another whispered.

Snow grinned. His plan was coming to fruition. All of it was coming together, and Peeta hadn't even had to kill anyone yet.

Without warning, Katniss summoned a bow and arrow, pulling it back and levelling it at Gale's chest. "I'm sorry," she said. "But I'll always choose Prim."

She let the arrow fire, but Snow stopped it right before it hit flesh. Gale gasped, staring at the arrow on the ground. Snow materialized next to Gale, and said, "I'm sorry you were dragged into this, my child. This should never have gone on as long as it has." He turned to Katniss, who was staring at him, fists shaking. "This was a test, Miss Everdeen. No one was ever going to be hurt so long as I was here. And as for your test result, I'm afraid...you did not make the cut."

Katniss growled at him. "You can't do this," she said. "You can't take this away from me just because I care about one human!"

"One human is all it takes," Snow said simply. "And I know that better than anyone else."

Katniss gestured to the crowd. "The people will never let you!"

"The people have known you're not for them for a while, now, Katniss," Peeta said. "They know you don't care about me, they know you don't care about anything but yourself. And your sister."

"That's not true!" Katniss exclaimed.

"You tried to murder a man because you'd rather have your sister alive than dead!" Peeta shot back. "If that's not telling, then I don't know what is!"

The crowd rose up an agreement, and with a snap of Snow's fingers, all of the power Katniss held was sapped out of her in a ball of white light and brought back to Snow. "I'm afraid we cannot trust you with this anymore, Miss Everdeen," he said coldly. "I would say I'm sorry, but I protect the people like you protect your sister. Unapologetically."

Katniss charged him but he easily used the winds to knock her down to the ground. The priests released Primrose with a nod and Primrose just stood there, shaking and looking at Katniss like she had betrayed everything Primrose stood for. For all Snow knew, she might have. Katniss stood and tried to attack Snow again, but again was unsuccessful. Snow turned to Peeta. "Thank you for standing up for the people of this planet," he said. Had to keep up pretenses, after all.

"Of course," Peeta said. "Is there anything else you need from me, or am I released from my contract?"

"There is nothing more I need from you in this moment," Snow said. "However, if I need help, you will be the first one I call, understand?"

Peeta nodded and Snow released himself from his corporeal form, watching the chaos ensure. Primrose walked over to Katniss, saying, "How could you?! How could you give all that up for me?!"

"Prim, I—"

"—I can handle myself, Katniss! And you could have made real change! You could have made this whole place a world worth living in, but you squandered your chance!" Primrose exclaimed. "I can't—I don't even want to deal with you right now."

And with that, she stormed off into the crowd. Gale walked up to Katniss and said, "You're really that kind of woman, huh? You wouldn't even let someone else make the kill for you and call their bluff?"

Katniss couldn't meet him in the eye. Peeta began to walk off, but Katniss grabbed at his ankle. "Peeta...we can work things out, can't we? I'm sorry. Please, give me a second chance."

"Sorry, Katniss, but I've met someone who respects me for me," Peeta said. "And I'd much rather be with someone who cares about me than someone who cares about the attention I give them."

And with that, Peeta walked off. The crowd began to dissipate, but Katniss stayed, laying on the ground, defeated. Snow smiled and went back to his realm. He was tired of mortals for the time being, and he hoped he didn't have to deal with them for at least the next two years if he didn't want to.

Effie looked at him sadly as he returned and shook his head. Haymitch just sighed. "Told you it would happen, Effie," he said.

"I know," she sighed. "But I just wish that she had a chance."

"If you even think about making her your champion, you're dead to me," Snow said. "She's reckless, and endangers everyone around her for the sake of a cheap thrill."

"I understand," Effie said.

Snow nodded, and walked off to get some time to himself. No one would ever be better than him, or undermine him again. He was going to make sure of that.

**Author's Note:**

> Any and all comments welcome!


End file.
